On Wednesday, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced that his government intends to appoint 36 Assistant Directors of Land Records (ADLRs) and is contemplating the regularization of contract surveyors’ services. During the 36th National Survey Day celebration at Vidhana Soudha, he stated that appointment letters for 750 surveyors will be distributed shortly. Siddaramaiah emphasised that its efficient functioning is essential to maintaining peace among people. We allocated enough funds to the revenue department and will continue to do so. We will also provide it with adequate staff.
He urged officials to complete pending survey work within two years and achieve Podi-mukta villages, noting that unresolved land survey issues often lead to disputes and violence. “Disputes will arise if survey work is pending in villages. Clashes and heinous crimes like murder have occurred in villages due to disputes over borders of their land. These things will not happen if the survey department completes its work,” he said. He also said the govt will consider demands of licensed surveyors to regularise their services.
Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda emphasized the progress made in survey technology and digitization. “To improve the accuracy of surveys, we have established 49 CORS (Continuously Operating Reference Station) centers,” Byre Gowda noted. “We are now conducting rover-based surveys instead of using traditional equipment, which allows for faster, more precise, and digital results.
Currently, we have 600 rovers, and the government has approved the acquisition of an additional 5,000 rovers, which will be procured in stages.” He pointed out that the use of rover equipment has dramatically decreased the time required for surveys. “Previously, surveyors took over six hours to survey a piece of land, but now, with the use of rovers, this can be accomplished in just eight minutes,” he explained.
Byre Gowda also announced that all revenue documents pertaining to the survey department will be fully digitized within a year. The department currently processes 130,000 applications each month and carries out between 5,000 and 6,000 survey operations daily. “In the past, the waiting period for a survey could extend to six months, but it has now been reduced to a month or less,” he added.
